Day 16: Hot Springs to Pizza!

May 26th, 2021

Mile Marker: 328

Miles Hiked Today: 24

The moon was out bright and shiny last night. So much so I woke up at 2 am and wondered if it was already 5 am!

Planner and I headed out pretty early because we were excited to hit the hot springs 4 miles away. We were told that it was a popular spot for locals and usually is busy.

We arrived around 7 am and we could only see 2 people in the front hot spring and none in the water next to it. Heck yes!

Planner and I made friends with the two locals and jumped in. We sat and relaxed and then jumped into the cold river to cool off and then once more back into the hot spring. We were so happy it wasn’t yet populated with locals or hikers. We were beyond lucky!

After about an hour and half we dried off and headed back on trail. We had a full 24 mile day and were excited about where we were to end as well.

The trail led us further along the sides of gorgeous mountains and gave us glimpses into further, bigger mountains ahead.

We were lower in elevation but high enough where we didn’t necessarily feel like we needed to siesta. Plus there was a nice breeze all day.

We are starting to see more and more hikers as we are reaching people who started before us. It really is nice to camp around others and meet others. We are sure our tramily of 2 will eventually grow as we find people wanting to do as many miles as us.

Towards the last couple of hours of hiking Planner and I made it up a huge climb and then were left with mouths wide open.

What the.

We were not expecting this grand of a lake at all, but were so thrilled. It was magnificent.

The trail led us around what felt like most of the lake and then eventually we got off trail to find the “kiosk” to pay 5 dollars for a campground tent spot near the lake.

This part was a bit tricky as the Guthook app didn’t provide as clear of information as we would have liked. But essentially us and a couple other hikers found our way following a rode for a while until we came to the entrance. Once there we were shown where to go for our camp spot and then were given a number to order pizza!

Yummy yum yum yum!!!!!

Planner and I ordered a large veggie pizza and cheese sticks. It was an hour wait but we were able to head to the restrooms to “shower” (using their sinks) and wash some socks. When the time got close waiting for pizza we went and sat by the curb they were to come to.

I was filled with so much happiness knowing that a big meal was coming my way.

We got our pizza and unfortunately weren’t able to finish it. Thankfully, Planner had ziploc baggies for us to use and pack out the remaining for during our hike the next day! Best pizza on trail so far!